Zimbos reject Madam Boss E-creator apology

Zim Now Writer

“I always tell my marketing team that appointing a brand ambassador is a NO, period. How do you invest your brand identity on something that you cannot control?” the CEO of one of the big players in the automotive industry said.

That is exactly what all brand managers that have linked their products or services to Madam Boss must be asking themselves right now as she faces public backlash for endorsing E-creator.

These include Nash Paints, NetOne, Primket Travel and Tours, Skylake Boreholes, Elaine Solar, Senditoo, Nyaradzo, Ingwebu Breweries, Aquaclear and Comesa yellow card.

A PR guru who declined to be named said all these brands suffer negativity by association over the comedienne’s ill-advised association with E-creator.

“She led people into putting money in a pyramid scheme. They lost money while she made money from the deal. That just stinks and by association the other brands could now be viewed as not fully trustworthy because they work with someone whose ethics and principles are under question,” said the PR practitioner.

He said the whole point of a brand ambassador is to create a perception about a brand. “When that perception is positive, it influences what we call top of the psyche awareness in the market, meaning people will feel like the know and love the brand, so subconsciously or consciously choose that product or service when faced with a choice.”

The PR practitioner said, it can then also work the other way when the brand ambassador becomes tainted: “This is what the Shona saying about kudziya moto wembavha (warming yourself at thief's fire) alludes to. People automatically begin to associate your brand with the negativity around the ambassador and subconsciously or consciously reject it when making a buying choice"

Madam Boss has since tried to plaster on some PR about her endorsement of E-Creator at a time when discussion about the business model was already a hot topic in the social media streets.

“We went through all the due diligence processes to make sure we protect you, our followers. We checked everything about this company and there was no indication of any foul play and in the end, even Madam Boss joined E-Creator as well and all was okay,” said Madam Boss’s marketing team in a statement.

They went on to shift the blame to media houses that had also touted E-creator as the real deal:

“And according to some articles, they were one of the leading e-commerce companies in the country,” the statement read.

But the people on Madam Boss's wall were not all forgiving:

“Remember that we told you to stop promoting Ponzi schemes and you thought these are people driven by jealous. The problem is bigger than you, its a society problem that assumes that celebrities know everything. You should learn to decline things that you don't understand,” wrote Mlungisi Dube and his opinion was endorsed with multiple likes.

“Everything pointed to a ponzi scheme and we all know what happens to ponzi schemes🙄🙄 THEY COLLAPSE!! Musanyepedzera kuzungaira... next,” wrote Monica Gavera.

“Which due diligence measures did u take?if i may ask? Cz with just normal evaluation chaiyo waitongoona kuti iponzi scheme,” wrote Mercy Rutendo Tahwa.

Some platforms that had published the laudatory articles have since pulled them down. But for brands that have made Madam Boss the face of their products and services, breaking the link is not so easy.

Internationally, brands that have been burned when their ambassadors lost public goodwill include Nike which opted to cut ties with the musician Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.

It is not know what number of people put money in E-creator and the total amount that might have been lost and if the business has really collapsed. But in the court of public domain it has been confirmed as a Ponzi scheme that has reached its expected end.